Walk In Bathtub Having Outward Opening Door and Entry Facilitative Seat

ABSTRACT

Described herein is a walk-in tub having an outward opening door that includes a walk-in bathtub having an outward opening door. The tub includes a body, which defines a cavity and at least one access wall which itself contains an entry surface that extends laterally away from the cavity. The entry surface defines a doorway or portal that is in communication with the cavity to facilitate lateral ingress to and egress from the cavity by a bather. Also contemplated with the scope of the invention are door sealing assemblies that serve to seal the door against the access wall.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/701,308, filed Sep. 14, 2012, entitled “Walk In Bathtub Having Outward Opening Door and Entry Facilitative Seat,” the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Walk-in bathtubs generally include higher tub walls, seating, and a side door, allowing the user to walk in to the tub from the side and sit down without having to climb down into a low bath tub or to elevate oneself over a tub wall. Walk-in tubs are well suited for individuals who have physical limitations that make it difficult or dangerous to climb into and out of a regular, low bathtub or to stand up in a shower for extended periods of time. Such limitations might include physical disabilities or simply the reduced strength, balance and range of motion that may occur with age. In addition, because the footprint of the walk-in tub can be reduced relative to the footprint of a traditional, lower, reclining-style tub, the tubs can be installed in smaller spaces, for example, allowing urban apartment dwellers to have a bathing tub, instead of merely a shower stall.

Many conventional walk-in tubs are configured so that door of the tub (which allows ingress and egress) opens inwardly, allowing the tub design to take advantage of the hydrostatic pressure of the water to press the door against the doorway to help seal the door.

However, an inward opening door requires significant physical maneuvering by the bather to situate him/herself in the tub and close the door. For example, the bather must enter the tub, remain standing and back himself or herself up sufficiently against the far wall of the tub to avoid obstructing the pathway of the door as it is closed. In addition, because the doors opened inwardly a significant distance between the faucet fixture and the tub seat had to be maintained to avoid obstruction by the fixture of the door. Disadvantageously, the necessary separation between the fixture and the seat made it difficult for a bather sitting on the seat to reach the fixture (creating a safety hazard) and also placed design limitations on the reduction of tub footprint and the type, style and nature of fixture used.

Prior art attempts to make walk-in tubs with outward opening doors have been made, but because of the challenges associated with achieving a watertight seal, most doors require significant physical strength to close and seal the doors, a disadvantage particularly as walk-in tubs bathers tend to be older and infirm. Many prior art designs rely upon large diameter sealing gaskets that require substantial physical force to cause the gasket to be tightly compressed between the door and the tub sidewalls to ensure that the closed tub does not leak. Prior art attempts have been made to use mechanical arrangements to reduce the amount of physical force necessary to compress the gasket and seal the door, but such designs can be improved upon.

There remains a need in the art for a walk-in tub having an outward opening door that can be sealed with relative ease and which provides safer ingress and egress for the bather.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In an embodiment of the invention, a walk-in tub having an outward opening door is described. Such tub allows for easy and safe ingress and egress by the bather, is capable of being designed so the bather can easily reach the water fixtures while partially or wholly supported by the seat in the tub, contains a seat designed to further facilitate easy ingress/egress from the tub and bears a door that is sealable by the bather without application of significant physical force and, in most cases, may be opened or closed by the bather while he/she remains in the safer, seated position.

In an embodiment, the invention includes a walk-in bathtub having an outward opening door. The tub includes a body, which defines a cavity for containing a bathing liquid, such as water. The tub body has at least one access wall which itself contains an entry surface that extends laterally away from the cavity. The entry surface defines a doorway or portal that is in communication with the cavity to facilitate lateral ingress to and egress from the cavity by a bather.

The entry surface of the access wall includes an adapting surface having a closure face that is positioned along the perimeter of the portion of the portal that is submerged when the cavity contains the liquid, the closure surface defining a bolt recess positioned adjacent to the portal. The bolt recess has a proximal portion that communicates with the portal and a distal portion that communicates with the proximal portion by an intermediate portion.

In an embodiment, the lateral width of the distal portion of the bolt recess (W_(d)) is less than the lateral width of the proximal portion (W_(p)) and the outer lateral edge of distal portion being the nearer the cavity than the outer later edge of the proximal portion.

The tub includes a door, which also has a submergible portion, wherein the submergible portion has a perimeter face that is shaped to be complementary to the shape of the portal and is opposable against the closure face along substantially the entire length of the closure face, the door being pivotally connected to the body at a position such that the door can be pivoted between a closed position in which the submergible portion of the door is substantially contained within the portal of the body and the perimeter face of the door is opposed against the closure face and an open position in which the door is positioned outside the cavity and the portal sufficiently to permit lateral ingress into and egress from the cavity through the portal by the bather.

The tub includes a gasket that is fixed to at least one of the wall and the door and positioned such that it is opposed against both the wall and the door when the door is in the closed position; and at least one bolt slidably attached to the door and positioned engageably with the bolt recess, whereby when the door is pivoted within the portal, the bolt can be slidably engaged into the proximal portion of the bolt recess and when the bolt is slidably extended within the bolt recess from the proximal portion to the distal portion thereof, sequential engagement of the bolt with the intermediate and distal portions of the bolt recess will urge the door laterally into the closed position.

In an embodiment, the tub of the invention includes a seat positioned within the cavity, and which may include a seating surface having a first portion nearer a water fixture than a second portion of the seating surface.

Also contemplated with the scope of the invention are door sealing assemblies that serve to seal the door against the access wall.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of various embodiments of the invention, may be better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings various embodiments. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of an embodiment of the walk-in bathtub of the invention, including body, door and gasket;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the tub showing the door in a closed position;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the tub with the door removed;

FIG. 4 is a front view of the tub of FIGS. 2 and 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the invention where the door is in a closed position in which a frame that rigidly supports the body is included;

FIG. 6 is a close up top plan view of the door opposed against the access wall, such that the gasket is compressed, thereby sealing the space between the door and the access wall;

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of a gasket of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 8 is a cross sectional view of a gasket of an embodiment of the invention, such gasket including a collar with an arrow head protrusion;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a non-integral bolt recess for use in an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 10 is an additional perspective view of a non-integral bolt recess for use in an alternative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 11, including FIGS. 11A to 11D, shows various views of the non-integral bolt recess of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 12 is a representation of the fixation of a collared gasket to a door by insertion of the gasket into a pre-worked groove on the surface of the door;

FIG. 13 is a view of a door in an embodiment of the invention, showing an exemplary actuator;

FIG. 14, including FIGS. 14A and 14B, illustrates an embodiment of the actuator showing the bolt in each of a locked and an unlocked position;

FIGS. 15 and 16 illustrate an embodiment of the actuator showing the bolt in each of a locked and an unlocked position;

FIG. 17 illustrates a handle having a locking mechanism contained therein that may be included in an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 18 illustrates components of the embodiment of the locking mechanism of FIG. 17; and

FIG. 19 illustrates an embodiment of the locking mechanism shown in FIG. 18 in greater detail.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The figures and description provided herein detail embodiments of a walk-in tub having an outward opening door and a set designed to facilitate safer and easier ingress/egress. The outward opening door pivots between an open and a closed position, allowing a bather to step in or out of the tub. The door is capable of being closed and sealed by the bather with relative ease and while safely in a seated position or while at least partially supported by the seat. Sealing of the doors is achieved when one or more of the slidable bolts is/are first extended into a proximal portion of a bolt recess, then sequentially engaged into the remainder of the bolt recess, thereby urging the door against the access wall, allowing for compression of a gasket between the door and the access wall of the tub.

The invention in some embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings herein. In the specification, words such as “inner” and “outer,” “upper” and “lower,” “superior” and “inferior,” “distal” and “proximal”, “inwardly” and “outwardly,” and “upwardly” and “downwardly,” and words of similar import are used for assisting in the understanding of the invention when referring to the drawings and absent a specific definition or meaning otherwise given by the specification for such terms should not be considered limited to the scope of the invention.

With reference to FIGS. 1-5, the tub 100 (in this embodiment) includes a body 102 that defines a cavity 104. In an embodiment, the body 102 includes generally planar upright side walls 146 joined at their outermost edges to form approximately 90 degree angles. However, in some embodiments is may be desirable that one or more of the sidewalls 146 is curved or bowed, and/or may join the other side wall(s) to form obtuse or acute angles. In an alternative, the body 102 may be configured to have a non-uniform or fanciful shape (in plan view), such as for example, a heart shape, a circular shape, or an ovoid shape.

The body 102 may be of any dimension. In some embodiments, it may be preferred that the body is capable of holding about 20 to about 40 gallons of water for a single bather tub. The dimension may be smaller, for example, if one is designing for a smaller end use space or larger, as desired, for example, if a tub having multi-bather capacity is required.

In addition, in some embodiments, the wall of the body may extend upwardly about 3-4 feet (conventional walk-in tub height), 5 feet or 8 feet or more, for example, if the tub is intended to be a component of a fully or partially enclosed bathing capsule or stall installation.

The body 102 is affixed at its lower extreme to a floor 148. One or more openings for drains or jets (not shown) may be included in the floor 148 and/or the sidewalls 146, the permit the entry or drainage of water or air.

A seat 150 may be located in the interior of the body 102. The seat 150 may be manufactured as a separate unit and fixed in the tub 100 or it may be formed integral with the body 102. In some embodiments, to facilitate ease of entry into the tub, the seat 150 may have a seating surface 158. In addition, the tub may include one or more water fixtures, such as, for example, hot or cold water faucets or a handheld showerhead. In a preferred embodiment, the water fixtures may be located in that portion of the sidewall(s) that is opposite the seat, such that a bather sitting in the tub would be facing the water fixtures and able to reach and adjust the fixtures while supported by at least a portion of the seat.

In an embodiment, at least a first portion of the seating surface 158 is nearer to the water fixture (or the sidewall in which the water fixture is intended to be fixed); this facilitates ease of entry into the tub, and permits most bathers to reach and adjust the fixtures while supported by at least a portion of the seating surface. In some embodiments, an edge 156 of the seating surface defines a perimeter that is in the form of an S-curve or a W-form.

Regardless of the configuration of the body and/or the seat, it includes an access wall 106. The access wall 106 contains an entry surface 108 that extends away from the cavity in a substantially lateral plane and defines a doorway or portal 110 that is in communication with the cavity 104. The portal 110 permits egress and ingress of the bather to the cavity 104 when the door is in an open position. It may be preferred that the portal extends from a generally level rim of the body to a substantially planar floor 148, such that the lowermost portion of the entry surface is substantially co-planar with the floor.

In some embodiments it may be desirable that the lateral width of the entry surface (W_(es)) is minimized so that a bather need only take a small step forward to enter the cavity. Alternatively, in some embodiments it may be desirable that the lateral width of the entry surface (W_(es)) is 8 to 12 inches, so that the bather can place his foot on the surface when entering or leaving the tub. The entry surface may contain anti-slip devices, drainage channels or vents, and/or any other components as desired.

The entry surface 108 includes an adapting surface 112 that contains a closure face 114 that is positioned at least along the perimeter of the portion of the portal 110 that is submerged when the cavity 104 contains a liquid. By “submerged”, it is meant that portion of the portal (or door or other component) that is located in a plane that is beneath a hypothetical plane defined by the horizontal surface of the water in the cavity, regardless other whether such portion is in direct contact with the water. In an alternative, it may be preferred that the closure face 114 of the adapting surface 112 is positioned such that it generally faces away from the interior of the cavity 104 or that the adapting surface 112 has a generally rectangular lateral cross section, with the closure face 114 being positioned on a wall facing in a direction generally opposite the interior of the cavity 104.

Referencing FIGS. 1-5, the walk-in tub includes a door 132 that includes a submergible portion 132. The door 132 includes a perimeter face 136 that is configured to be complementary to the shape of the portal 110. The perimeter face 136 of the door 132 is opposable against the closure face 114, against substantially the entire length of the closure face 114. In an embodiment, the door 132 is pivotally connected to the body 102 in a position such that the door 132 can be pivoted between and open and a closed position. Such pivotal connection may be achieved by any means known or to be developed in the art, and may include straps, hinges, rotating bars, and the like. Other means of connection may include those described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/761,257, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. The door may be fixed to open in the standard manner (i.e., so that the bather passes behind the inside face of the open door when entering the tub) or in the so-called “suicide door” configuration.

In an embodiment, when the door is in the closed position, the submergible portion of the door 132 is substantially contained within the portal of the body 102 and the perimeter face of the door 132 is opposed against the closure face 114. When the door 132 is in an open position, the door is located outside the portal 112 sufficiently to permit lateral egress into and ingress from the cavity 104 by a bather.

Also included in the walk-in tub of the invention is a gasket 138. The gasket 138 may be fixed to the access wall 106 or to the door 132 or to both. The gasket 138 is fixed such that when the door 132 is in a closed position, the gasket 138 is opposed against both the wall and the door, as is shown in, for example, FIG. 6. In an embodiment that may be preferred, the gasket is fixed along substantially the entire length of the perimeter face of the door. In another embodiment, the gasket is fixed along substantially the entire length of the closure face of the of the access wall. Alternatively, the gasket may be fixed along a portion of the perimeter face and along a complementary portion of the closure face.

The gasket is preferably made of a compressible and/or elastomeric material. Suitable materials may include, for example, rubber, plastic, elastomers, and/or polymers or copolymer material. In some embodiments, it may be desirable that the selected material is latex-free. The gasket may be hollow or solid and may have a cross section of shape. In an embodiment, however, it may be preferred that the gasket is hollow and has a substantially circular cross section.

The gasket may be fixed to the door or the access wall by any mechanism known or developed in the art. In an embodiment, the gasket is fixed by adhesive. Alternatively, the gasket includes a collar or series of tabs or similar structures that can be fitted into a groove or channel present on the surface to which the gasket is fixed, for example, as is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. In FIG. 8, a gasket 138 having a collar 144 with an arrowhead protrusion 168 is shown.

The door 132 also includes at least one bolt. The bolt may be any configuration known or to be developed in the art, although those having a substantially circular, oval, or square shape in cross section may be preferred in some embodiments. It may be preferred that the face of the bolt is substantially flat, with or with out a beveled edged. However, rounded, bull-nosed, pointed, and or tapered faces may also be used in various embodiments.

The bolt is slidably attached to the door. Preferably, it is positioned engageably with the bolt recess that is defined by the adapting surface. The adapting surface 114 defines at least one bolt recess 120, although in some embodiments, depending on the size and shape of the portal 110, the adapting surface may define, for example, about two, about three, about 4 or about 5 to about 25 bolt recesses.

Turning to FIGS. 9, 10 and 11, each bolt recess 120 is configured to engage a bolt and includes at least three portions: a proximal portion 122 that communicates with the portal 110 and a distal portion 126 that is in communication with the proximal portion 122 by an intermediate portion 124 (that is, the intermediate portion 124 is disposed between the proximal 122 and the distal 126 portions). The longitudinal width (W_(p)) of the proximal portion is greater than the longitudinal width (W_(d)) of the distal portion. The bolt recess 120 is situated so that the outermost lateral edge 130 of the proximal portion 122 is nearer to the portal than the outer lateral edge 128 of the proximal portion 126. In an embodiment, it may be preferred that the bolt is a substantially cylindrical bolt; in such circumstance, it may be preferred that the distal portion 126 defines a space that is circular in cross section and has a diameter only slightly larger than the diameter of the cross section of the corresponding substantially cylindrical bolt.

The bolt recess 120 (in whole or in part) may be formed integral with the body 102, or it may be formed (in whole or in part) as a separate piece or pieces and fixed within the closure face 114. FIGS. 9-11 show an exemplary bolt recess 120 that is formed separately from the body 102 of the tub 100 that is intended to be used with a substantially cylindrical bolt 140. In the Figures, outermost lateral edge 130 of the proximal portion 122 defines a hole 152 that is substantially oval shaped in cross section and the outer lateral edge of the distal portion 126 defines a space that is circular in cross section. The diameter of the circular cross section of the lateral edge 126 is slightly greater than the diameter of the cylindrical bolt. For example, it may be about 0.2% to 0.5% greater or about 1% to about 5% greater in diameter.

With reference to FIG. 13, the bolt 140 is slidably attached within the door 132, although it may be located on the outside or on the inside of the door, if desired. The bolt may be contained at least partially within the door, and slidably extends through the perimeter face 136 of the door. For example, the bolt(s) 140 may extend in a direction that is substantially perpendicular to the perimeter face of the door.

It may be preferred that the bolt is operably attached to an actuator that is connected to the door, for example, an actuator that may permit the bather to extend and/or retract the bolt while remaining at least partially supported by the seat or while in the cavity of the body. The actuator that is connected to the door may be within the door, or on the outside or the inside of the door.

The actuator may be any known or to be developed in the art. In an embodiment, the actuator may include, for example with reference to FIG. 13, a member 162 that is operably attached to an extension bar 164, to which the bolt(s) 140 is operably attached, either directly or indirectly. In an embodiment, the door may include a bolt guide 166 through which the bolt is extended and/or retracted. The bolt guide 166 may be, for example, a sleeve, a ring or series of rings, a groove or any other mechanism that serves to guide the bolt in its path to the bolt recess.

As the tubs of the invention are designed to be used by older persons who may have reduced upper body strength, it may desirable in some embodiments to that the actuator includes a lever, whereby the actuating force exerted upon the bolt is greater than operating force exerted by the bather upon the actuator. Actuators that meet one or more of the above-described criteria and which may be suitable for use in the invention include, for example, those described in WO 2010/074771 A1; U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,066,316; 3,341,239; 3,863,275; 4,360,935; 4,802,247; 7,299,509; and United States Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0102746, the contents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference.

In what may be a preferred embodiment, referencing FIGS. 14-18, the actuator includes a handle 200 operably connected to one or more bolts 140, such that locking of the door 132 within the portal perimeter 116 may be actuated by disposing the handle 200 from an unlocked position 201 to a locked position 202. In the unlocked position 201, the bolts 140 are not disposed within the bolt recess 118 (not shown). The bolts 140 are connected via one or more extension or tie members 300 with the handle 200, preferably to a distal end 210 thereof, which is connected to a proximal end 230 of the handle by way of an intermediate portion 220.

In this embodiment, the handle 200 may have a pivotal mounting 250 positioned thereon, such as at or near the distal end 210 or along the intermediate portion 220, and the handle 200 may be pivotally mounted at the pivotal mounting 250 so that movement of the proximal end 230 of the handle 200 in one direction causes the handle 200 to pivot about the pivotal mounting 250, thereby urging the distal end 210 in the direction opposite the direction of movement of the proximal end 230. The position of the pivotal mounting may be selected to take advantage of leveraging principles, so that force applied to the handle at its proximal end 230 may be transmitted by the handle 200 about the pivotal mounting 250 and exerted by the distal end 210 of the handle on another object or surface (e.g., one or more extension or tie members 300 or one or more bolts 140) as a fraction or a multiple of the force applied to the proximal end 230. Leveraging principles are well understood, and substantially any of the numerous structures and methods known for transmitting force between physical members may be used to operably connect a pivoting handle 200 with a bolt 140.

A bolt-actuating handle 200 may have any of a wide variety of known locking mechanisms 400 associated with it. Locking mechanisms may, for example, inhibit or prevent unintended or accidental deployment of the handle 200 from the locked position 202. One example of a locking mechanism 400 is shown in FIGS. 14, 17, 18, and 19.

FIG. 17 illustrates a handle having a locking mechanism 400 contained therein. The button 410 of the locking mechanism 400 is positioned on a grip 205 located at or near the proximal end 230 of the handle 200. The pivotal mounting 250 of the handle 200 is locate at the distal end 210 of the handle. In FIG. 17, an end of the stop-engaging portion 435 of the latch 430 of the locking mechanism 400 may be seen extending beyond the intermediate portion 220 of the handle 200.

FIG. 18 illustrates parts of this embodiment of the locking mechanism 400. The button 410 visible in FIG. 17 is operably connected with a latch 430 by way of a latch-displacing mechanism 20 that physically displaces the latch 430 when the button 410 is depressed into the handle. In FIG. 18, the latch is in the non-displaced position (i.e., the button is not depressed), and the stop-engaging portion 435 of the latch 430 (which, in this embodiment is carried within the handle with the stop-engaging portion 435 extending therefrom) is positioned such that it engages with a latch stop 440 that is mounted on a portion of the tub other than the handle 200 (e.g., on the door 132), such that the handle 200 may not be displaced in the direction of the stop 440 while the stop-engaging portion 435 is thus deployed. When the button 410 is depressed, it operates the latch-displacing mechanism 420, which displaces the latch 430 such that the stop-engaging portion 435 thereof does not engage the stop 440 when the handle 200 is moved in the direction of the stop 440. Thus, the handle may be moved in that direction when the button is depressed, but may not be moved in that direction until the button is depressed. This may prevent, for example, unintended movement of the handle by a bather moving within the tub.

FIG. 19 illustrates an embodiment of the locking mechanism 400 in greater detail. In FIG. 19, it is seen that the latch-displacing mechanism 420 includes three components. One or more toothed track gears 421 are connected with the button, such that movement of the button 410 causes movement of the track gear 421. The teeth of the track gear 421 mesh with teeth of an axle-mounted gear assembly 422, such that lateral movement of the gear track 421 induces axial rotation of the axle-mounted gear assembly 422. Axle-mounted gear assembly 422 also interacts with an axle-engaging end 423 of the latch 430 (e.g., by engagement of the end 423 with the same teeth or different teeth of the axle-mounted gear assembly 422 as those which interact with the track gear 421). Engagement between the axle-mounted gear assembly 422 and the latch 430 facilitates button-driven displacement of the latch 430 within a latch channel 225 within the handle. Thus, when button 410 is depressed, it causes lateral movement of the track gears 421, axial rotation of axle-mounted gear assembly 422, and displacement of latch 430 within the latch channel 225 such that the stop-engaging portion 435 of the latch 430 is displaced to a position at which it will not engage a latch stop 440 mounted on the tub.

FIG. 14 illustrates operation of the handle 200 and locking mechanism 400 thus described. In FIG. 14A, the handle is disposed in the locked position 202. Because button 410 is not depressed, the handle 200 may not be displaced from the locked position 202 to the unlocked position 201 (i.e., because the stop-engaging portion 435, not shown, engages the latch stop 440 if such displacement is attempted and prevents such displacement). Similarly, in FIG. 14B, the handle is disposed in the unlocked position 201. Because button 410 is not depressed, the handle 200 may not be displaced from the unlocked position 201 to the locked position 202 (i.e., because the stop-engaging portion 435, not shown, engages the latch stop 440 if such displacement is attempted and prevents such displacement). Thus, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 14, the locking mechanism 400 prevents unintended displacement of the handle 200 between the locked and unlocked position 202 and 201 or to an intermediate position.

To close and seal the portal 110, one pivots the door 132 from the open position to the closed position. The bolt or bolts is/are then approximately adjacent to the proximal portion of the bolt recess. Referencing FIGS. 11A to 11B, the bolt 142 is then extended and slidably engaged into the proximal portion 122 of the bolt recess. When the bolt is slidably extended within the bolt recess from the proximal portion 122 to the distal portion 126, sequential engagement of the bolt 140 with the intermediate and distal portions of the bolt recess urges the door laterally into the closed position and compresses the gasket. In an embodiment, this cause the gasket to be compressed between the perimeter face 136 of the door 132 and the closure face 114 of the access wall 106, as is seen in FIG. 6.

The tub body, seat, door and/or other components (including the bolt recess) may be formed of any suitable material known or to be developed in the art, and each part may be formed out of the same or out of different materials. Suitable materials may include, for example, poured concrete, stone, wood, plaster, acrylic, fiberglass, porcelain, ceramic, marble, granite, stainless steel, aluminum, plastic, or other known materials. Such materials may be selected and “mix and matched” depending on the end use and/or end location of the tub. For example, if a tub is to be installed in an outdoor location, it may be desirable to fabricate it of tiled covered concrete (in the manner of a swimming pool). Alternatively, if the tub is to be sold for after market installation in residential bathrooms or assisted living facilities, it may be desirable to fabricate the tub body, seat, door and/or other components from molded acrylic. In most embodiments, it may be preferred that the material(s) selected are substantially waterproof, sanitizable, relatively resistant to corrosion and/or molds or mildew, and not prone to splitting, cracking or chipping.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes could be made to the embodiments described above without departing from the broad inventive concept thereof. It is understood, therefore, that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed, but it is intended to cover modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. 

We claim:
 1. A walk-in bathtub having an outward opening door comprising a body defining a cavity for containing a liquid and having an access wall with an entry surface that extends laterally away from the cavity, the entry surface defining a portal in communication with the cavity to facilitate lateral ingress to and egress from the cavity by a bather and including an adapting surface having a closure face positioned along the perimeter of the portion of the portal that is submerged when the cavity contains the liquid, the adapting surface defining at least one bolt recess positioned adjacent to the portal, the bolt recess having a proximal portion that communicates with the portal and a distal portion that communicates with the proximal portion by an intermediate portion, the longitudinal width (W_(d)) of the distal portion being lesser than the longitudinal width (W_(p)) of the proximal portion; the outer lateral edge of proximal portion being the nearer to the portal than the outer lateral edge of the distal portion; a door including a submergible portion, wherein the submergible portion has a perimeter face that is shaped to be complementary to the shape of the portal and is opposable against the closure face along substantially the entire length of the closure face, the door being pivotally connected to the body at a position such that the door can be pivoted between a closed position in which the submergible portion of the door is substantially contained within the portal of the body and the perimeter face of the door is opposed against the closure face and an open position in which the door is positioned outside the portal sufficiently to permit lateral ingress into and egress from the cavity by the bather; a gasket fixed to at least one of the access wall and the door and positioned such that it is opposed against both the wall and the door when the door is in the closed position; and at least one bolt slidably attached to the door and positioned engageably with the bolt recess, whereby when the door is pivoted within the portal, the bolt can be slidably engaged into the proximal portion of the bolt recess and when the bolt is slidably extended within the bolt recess from the proximal portion to the distal portion thereof, sequential engagement of the bolt with the intermediate and distal portions of the bolt recess will urge the door laterally into the closed position.
 2. The tub of claim 1, further comprising a seat positioned within the cavity.
 3. The tub of claim 2, wherein the tub further includes a water fixture connected therewith and wherein the seat is disposed to facilitate a bather facing the fixture while seated in the seat.
 4. The tub of claim 2, wherein the seat includes a seating surface having a first portion nearer the fixture than a second portion of the seating surface.
 5. The tub of claim 4, wherein an edge of the seating surface defines a perimeter that is in the form of an S-curve.
 6. The tub of claim 2, wherein the seat is fixed to the body.
 7. The tub of claim 2, wherein the seat is integral with the body.
 8. The tub of claim 1, wherein the closure face of the adapting surface is positioned such that it generally faces away from the interior of the cavity.
 9. The tub of claim 1, wherein the adapting surface has a generally rectangular lateral cross section, with the closure face being positioned on a wall facing in a direction generally opposite the interior of the cavity.
 10. The tub of claim 1, wherein the gasket is fixed to at least one of the perimeter face of the door and the closure face of the wall.
 11. The tub of claim 1, wherein the gasket is fixed using an adhesive.
 12. The tub of claim 2, wherein the submergible portion of the door that is opposable against the closure face contains a channel and the gasket is fixed to the door by inserting a collar of the gasket into the channel.
 13. The tub of claim 1, wherein the gasket is compressible.
 14. The tub of claim 1, wherein the gasket is made a material comprising at least one of a rubber, an elastomer, a thermoplastic, a foam, and a polymer or copolymer.
 15. The tub of claim 1, comprising at least two bolts and a corresponding number of bolt recesses.
 16. The tub of claim 1, wherein the bolt has a substantially flat face.
 17. The tub of claim 1, wherein the bolt is contained at least partially within the door and extends through the perimeter face thereof.
 18. The tub of claim 1, wherein the bolt extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the perimeter face of the door.
 19. The tub of claim 1, wherein the bolt is operably attached to an actuator connected to the door.
 20. The tub of claim 1, wherein the actuator is operable by the bather while within the cavity.
 21. The tub of claim 1, wherein the actuator includes a lever, whereby the actuating force exerted upon the bolt is greater than operating force exerted by the bather upon the actuator.
 22. The tub of claim 1, wherein the cavity defined by the body has a generally level rim and a floor and wherein the portal extends from the rim substantially to the floor.
 23. The tub of claim 1, wherein the door does not extend substantially above the rim when the door is in the closed position.
 24. The tub of claim 1, wherein the portion of the body that defines the cavity is unitary with the portion of the body that defines the bolt recess.
 25. The tub of claim 1, further comprising a frame that rigidly supports the body. 